Russia’s requests to US to extradite criminals remain unanswered

Among those criminals are a participant in illegal groups Ilias Akhmadov, who was involved in fighting, and Tomaz Nalbandov, accused of a kidnapping

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MOSCOW, July 22 (Itar-Tass) - An official of Russia’s competent bodies said in response to a question from the media that using the partner channels and the channels of Interpol, Russia’s competent authorities had addressed the US authorities several times requesting extradition of criminals on the federal and international wanted lists.

“However, those requests either remained unanswered, or we received refusals,” the source said.

The official gave several examples.

“Those people, for example, are a participant in illegal groups Ilias Akhmadov, who was involved in fighting, and Tomaz Nalbandyanov, accused of a kidnapping,” the official said.

Tamaz Nalbandyanov, along with the kidnapping, is accused of extortion. He is on the federal and international wanted lists since 2001. In 2000, he entered the US, filed an application to the court for a political asylum, which was satisfied. In 2002 he was granted a residence permit in the US. Three years later, Russia’s Prosecutor General’s Office addressed the US Justice Department with a request from Nalbandyanov’s extradition, but received a refusal. In 2009, Russian competent authorities addressed officially the US embassy in Moscow with a request to extradite Nalbandyanov.

Ilyas Akhmadov, former Foreign Ministry in the Chechen Republic of Ichkeria, in 2004 received a political asylum in the United States despite being on the international wanted list as he had been accused of organisation of an illegal militant group and participation in it. In August, 1994, Ilyas Akhmadov, being a member of the so-called reconnaissance and sabotage battalion of Shamil Basayev participated in the fights in Argun against the bandit group of Ruslan Labazanov. In a fire exchange his leg was injured and he remained outside Chechnya for four months. During the first Chechen war in December 1994 he participated directly in the action against the Russian Army. He was Shamil Basayev’s aide-de-camp. He was a member in the nearest circle of Aslan Maskhadov, and the latter appointed him foreign minister in 1999. Presently, Ilyas Akhmadov resides in the US. He has been there at least since 2003. He is married with three sons. In 2004, Interpol sent to the US an official request to extradite the criminal, but there has not been any reply. Yet another application also remained unanswered.